How do your Eyebrows look?

Bushy eyebrows - happy, sad, naughty? (Credit: mumbles)

How do you look – happy, angry, sad, naughty? Look carefully and you’ll notice that the shape of our eyebrows play an important role in the way we look.

Low, flat eyebrows that hang over the eyes denote fatigue, while an eyebrow that is highest in the middle denotes sadness. Downward slanting eyebrows portray anger, while highly arched eyebrows portray happiness.

Frequently, malposition of the eyebrows can be overlooked when considering facial aging and expression. Eyebrow sagging and upper eyelid fullness occurs over time as a result of gravity and the tug of war of repeated opposing muscle contractions. In more advanced stages, low eyebrows and upper eyelid fullness can contribute to peripheral and upper visual field loss. Furthermore, the heavy eyebrow skin pushes the eyelid down causing a tired appearance.

To counteract the eyebrow droop, many people unknowingly raise their eyebrows to remove the brow and eyelid skin from their visual space. These people eventually develop furrows or wrinkles in the forehead due to the constant contraction of the muscles that raise the eyebrow. In addition, there are those who are sensitive to light and frequently “squint and squeeze” their eyes. This effectively pulls the eyebrows down and leads to wrinkles between the eyebrows and at the corners of the eyes (known as crow’s feet).

Botox is an effective, temporary corrective measure for fine lines of the forehead and lines between the eyebrows. Botox works by freezing the muscle movement for several months. However, if the eyebrow is already positioned low relative to the brow bone, Botox may contribute to brow lowering since it will weaken the muscles on the forehead that are responsible for holding the eyebrow up. In this case or for the purpose of creating a more pleasant appearance, the best corrective measure is brow lift surgery.

Most brow lift and forehead surgery is now performed with the aid of a tiny camera. This endoscopic surgery allows the surgeon to make very small incisions hidden in the hairline thereby causing less nerve damage, swelling, and bruising than traditional open, coronal browlift surgery. Because of the minimal trauma with endoscopic surgery, the patient has an overall faster recovery time.

Older patients with severe skin excess of the forehead may be better served by other browlift techniques.